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What different world maps get right – and what they get wrong
The United Nations has adopted a resolution calling for the widely used Mercator world map to be replaced with a projection that more fairly represents the true size of continents, after criticism that the centuries-old map distorts perceptions of regions such as Africa. The “Correct the Map” resolution, passed by the UN General Assembly, addresses…
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Junta calls in Russian troops to crush Niger mutiny as Williams sisters bow out at US Open
Also tonight: a Venice documentary exposes Putin’s war on press freedom, a Florida woman avoids charges after a fatal Walmart car-park shooting, the Muppets mark fifty UK years, and two children hurt in a bouncy-castle accident in Australia.
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10,000 migrants are living in makeshift tents on a beach covered in human waste… and with them comes a crime wave of 21 sex attacks, including nine on children. For anyone still advocating open borders, welcome to the dystopian Spanish enclave of Ceuta
Ceuta, Spain’s small enclave on the North African coast, is grappling with the aftermath of a mass border crossing that began on 30 July, when tens of thousands of migrants entered from Morocco in a single day, roughly doubling the town’s population. While most of the estimated 70,000 arrivals have since returned to Morocco, around…
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Charlotte Church puts ‘real Tardis’ Welsh cottage on the market featuring interiors ‘inspired by singer’s travels to Africa and Morocco’
Singer Charlotte Church has listed her Welsh cottage for sale at £695,000, just over two years after buying the mid-17th-century property. The sale follows her earlier disposal of her former six-bedroom mansion, The Spinney, in Dinas Powys, and comes amid comments she has made in recent years about no longer having the wealth she once…
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Is Russia proving better at protecting friends than fighting enemies in West Africa?
When mutinous soldiers seized a strategic military base in Niger’s capital, Niamey, last Saturday, the ruling junta relied on Russia’s Africa Corps to help loyalist forces retake control after a night of fighting. The episode is seen as the clearest evidence yet that Russia’s military presence in Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso extends beyond fighting…
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UN votes to adopt new world map to reflect Africa’s true size
The UN General Assembly has voted to adopt a new world map projection that more accurately represents Africa’s true size, replacing the widely used but distorting Mercator projection in the maps of institutions worldwide. The “Correct the Map” resolution, put forward by Togo with backing from African Union members, passed with 164 votes in favour,…
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Kolisi urges Boks to channel spirit of Soweto to beat All Blacks
South Africa captain Siya Kolisi has urged the Springboks to draw on the history of Soweto as they face New Zealand at Johannesburg’s FNB Stadium, seeking to move ahead in their four-Test series against the All Blacks. Kolisi, South Africa’s first black captain, linked the match to the 1976 Soweto Uprising, a student-led protest against…
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Kemi Badenoch’s defence-spending plan, Wales school stabbing and Sánchez protests dominate
The Tories unveil a plan to raise defence spending to 3% by 2030 funded by welfare cuts, a Pembrokeshire teacher is stabbed by a pupil, and thousands protest against Sánchez in Spain; plus food-stockpiling warnings, Premier League’s return and Gloria Steinem’s final interview.
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The map of the world as you know it will completely change to show countries’ true sizes under UN resolution – with Africa much larger
The UN General Assembly voted on a resolution encouraging countries, schools, international bodies and technology companies to move away from the widely used Mercator map projection in favour of more proportionally accurate alternatives, such as the Equal Earth projection. The resolution, put forward by Togo with the backing of the African Union, does not ban…
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Ceuta’s illegal migrants raise dolphin calf like a trophy in front of horrified locals after it was ‘hit with a stick’ as thousands of North Africans still remain in the enclave
A group of illegal migrants on a beach in Ceuta, the Spanish enclave in North Africa, were filmed lifting a baby dolphin above their heads like a trophy after allegedly striking it with a stick, in an incident that has provoked outrage among local residents. Footage shows a Spanish bystander confronting the group, warning them…